While Osama bin Laden and Al-Qaeda become a global threat, the rivalry between the CIA and FBI inadvertently sets the stage for the tragedy of 9/11 and the Iraq War.
The best episode of "The Looming Tower" season 1 is "Now It Begins…", rated 7.7/10 from 808 user votes. It was directed by Alex Gibney and written by N/A. "Now It Begins…" aired on 2/28/2018 and is rated 0.2 point(s) higher than the second highest rated, "Losing My Religion".
The chief of the FBI’s counter-terrorism unit, John O’Neill, invites rookie Muslim-American agent, Ali Soufan, onto his squad. Fighting to get information from the CIA, they soon realize their work is just beginning…as two American embassies are bombed.
Director: Alex Gibney
Writer: N/A
Following the simultaneous embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania, the FBI begins its investigation on the ground, while the CIA starts working on a retaliation plan.
Director: John Dahl
Writer: N/A
The FBI finds one of the surviving terrorists and discovers a game changing lead in Nairobi, while the CIA’s retaliation plan in approved.
Director: John Dahl
Writer: Bathsheba Doran
Continuing to keep information from the FBI, Schmidt is fired from Alec Station. Diane makes an important discovery about the owner of the phone number Owhali gave Chesney. O'Neill searches for solace in his faith as his personal and professional lives crumble before him.
Director: Ali Selim
Writer: Adam Rapp
The CIA and FBI are on high alert as threats surrounding the new millennium abound. O’Neill and Soufan raid an AQ cell in Brooklyn. The CIA continues to hide vital information from the FBI while they track suspicious individuals entering the U.S.
Director: Ali Selim
Writer: Shannon Houston
Vince continues asking for permission to share Mihdhar’s visa with the FBI. O’Neill loses his briefcase and an investigation into his handling of classified materials begins. A boy, radicalized after the CIA’s retaliation attack killed his friend, travels to Yemen to start his own martyrdom journey.
Director: Michael Slovis
Writer: Dan Futterman
O’Neill and Soufan travel to Yemen to begin the investigation into the bombing of the U.S.S. Cole. The FBI becomes aware of a meeting in Malaysia and of Khallad, without knowing the CIA has been aware of both of those things for months.
Director: Michael Slovis
Writer: Ali Selim
Everyone adjusts to a new president and, with it, a shift in threat priority. Soufan learns of the importance of UBL’s bodyguard and is refused access to him. O’Neill is denied re-entry into Yemen and forced to resign. The terrorists in the U.S., Hazmi, Mihdhar and Atta, are lost by their U.S. handler.
Director: Craig Zisk
Writer: Bathsheba Doran
The CIA becomes aware that Hazmi and Mihdhar are gone and must relay that to the FBI. O’Neill accepts a job as head of security at the World Trade Center. Soufan is sent back to Yemen. Hazmi, Mihdhar and Atta head to Vegas for a final indulgence.
Director: Craig Zisk
Writer: Adam Rapp
Nobody can get a hold of O'Neill on Sept. 11, 2001; Soufan's evacuation from Yemen stops short as the CIA Station Chief gives him the answers he has been seeking from the CIA; Schmidt is reinstated into Alec Station; Soufan interrogates Abu Jandal.
Director: Craig Zisk
Writer: Dan Futterman, Ali Selim